ELSBETH RONNER

negotiate

Just twenty, or maybe not. Four young girls, alert and a bit shy, who don’t dare ask too many questions, but like t0 linger. Asian, with a bag in their left hand and a mobile phone in their right. Walking efficiently, taking notes. A woman, less interested, talking on her phone, taking large strides through the space in order to get to somewhere else, meeting a friend?
More people taking pictures, what do they see, why do they take pictures?
Most visitors actually walk more slowly, taking their time to look at what is displayed on the walls.
Some have passed through the space before and greet the people they know.
A small woman with curls poses critical questions: ‘who is doing the research, what do they want to find? Are they aware of their own horizon of meaning?’ And then the inevitable American: ‘This is really fun!’ and ‘This is The Netherlands, the country we all wish we could be part of!’

The space is not just for passing through, it’s functional to the exhibition. Three rectangular rooms, in a balanced sequence. At first it is difficult to decode the space. Where to look, what do the crosses mean? What function do the colours have? There is a map on the ground, but what does it depict? And what are those people doing behind the scaffolding? The host answers questions and explains: ‘This is a research project, all first data is displayed here. Artists explore the city, they discover interesting scenes and locations and intervene or comment on them in some way.’ But what’s interesting? ‘Are you willing to get lost in the city by following these rules?’
People wait in line for the toilet. A guy from security stands to one side . He wears a cap, a blue t-shirt announcing his function and a belt. Among this cheerful crowd, his contrasting seriousness is striking.

The Dutch exhibition space for Between Realities is also a fine example of staging different scenes in public space.